GOP: Ban welfare cash at strip clubs

Voted on Wednesday evening was a bill that would ban welfare recipients from using their benefits at strip clubs, liquor stores and casinos. It’s the same measure that was included in a broader package pushed by House Republicans in December to extend the payroll tax holiday, and it overwhelmingly passed the House, 395-27.

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When he introduced the bill in December, Rep. Charles Boustany (R-La.) said the legislation was needed to address the “fraudulent misuse of funds” in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program, which give grants to states for them to develop their own welfare systems.

On the House floor Wednesday afternoon, Boustany said he hoped it would send a message that the “House is serious about this bipartisan, bicameral reform becoming law, ensuring welfare funds are spent on families and children as intended.”

Republicans also hope that the so-called “strip club loophole” could be included in the ongoing negotiations to extend the payroll tax holiday through the end of this year.

According to a 2010 report in the Los Angeles Times, casinos in California allowed welfare recipients to access benefits, leading then-Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to ban the practice days later. The amount accessed at casinos was about four-tenths of 1 percent of all welfare funds, while funds accessed at adult-entertainment venues were one one-thousandth of 1 percent, according to the state.

The measure was brought up under suspension of the rules, which means it needs a two-thirds vote of the House to pass, not a simple majority.